Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Linc's birthday was on Sunday, and on Monday morning he said he pinched himself to make sure he wasn't just dreaming about the day before - so I guess he had a pretty good day. He was a little bummed at first that he had to go to church on his birthday (this is, after all, the kid who when he heard about home schooling was wondering if"home churching" was an option), but when he realized he would be getting a treat from primary, he was okay. When he got home we had his favorite dinner: Salmon, pasta-roni, and peas. Then he had a lemon cake decorated like a basketball.

As a part of a newly established tradition, I'll fill you in on a few random facts you may not know about Lincoln:

1. He LOVES to read. He is currently working on the third book in the Eragon series.

2. He hates sleeping under covers. Over the past six months I think he has slept under his covers once, and that was because he was sick.

3. Linc has a great voice - but you have to catch him singing when he doesn't know you are listening or you will miss it.

4. Lincoln has an incredible knack for listening without you knowing it. On several occasions we have been trying to read scriptures only to find him goofing off or not paying attention. When we try to call him on it and ask him to tell us what we just read, he will do it - verbatim. It can be a bit frustrating when we are trying to make a point and it falls flat. :)

5. Lincoln loves to stay up late and get up early - sleep just seems to be a waste of time in his mind! Maybe when he is a teenager he will change his mind about this one.

6. Linc loves listening to his dad's 80's music. One of his favorites? "Eye of the Tiger" from Rocky.

7. He is quite a swimmer - last year he tackled the Butterfly stroke. It may not be perfect, but when I asked him if he was ready he replied in classic Lincoln fashion, "yeah...it's good to try new things, right mom?"

8. He and Tessa have a special bond. It is funny to watch them together. Tessa is protective of Sam, adores Emma as another caregiver, but it is Lincoln who she plays with. They are buddies.

9. Lincoln has the most tender heart. He will bound down the stairs each morning to make sure he hugs dad before he leaves for work, will hug and kiss his mom every morning before leaving for school (even if she has had to nag him to get him going in the morning), and will never say a harsh word to Tessa. He is a normal kid who has normal sibling interactions with his older sister and younger brother, but that's another story!

10. Finally, he says he is going to be an engineer when he grows up because he loves to build things, and he really has a knack for math. He loves lengthy building projects and will sometimes spend hours at a time working on Lego or Kinex projects.

You are an amazing kid, and we love you Lincoln! Happy ninth birthday!

You moms out there may be familiar with that book. It delightfully follows all the havoc that comes from offering a mouse a simple cookie, i.e., if you offer a cookie, the mouse will want milk, then a straw, then a mirror to make sure there is no milk mustache, then while looking in the mirror the mouse may notice that she needs to trim her hair so she'll need scissors, etc., etc. And so it goes.

That story has new meaning for me.

You see, we needed to fix the eating situation at our house. Our table fits great in the breakfast nook area ---until you actually have people at the table. The kids have to climb over the arms of the chairs to get into them, no one can get out from the table, cabinets, walls, and the table have all taken a beating, etc. At any rate it seemed like it made sense to get a new table to accommodate the six of us. But if you get a new table that fits us better, then the kitchen island is in the way. If we were to go to the trouble of moving and/or changing the island we would need to change out the countertop. If we do the island counters we should probably consider doing the other kitchen counters so they match, etc., etc., And so it goes.

We met with someone to do the work, got the bid, signed the contract, and started getting excited about all the changes. We were given a timeframe where it would probably be done, and then a backup time frame when it would absolutely be done. That deadline passed two months ago.

It is crazy because just enough work will get done to make us think we are really going to head towards completion, and then.......nothing. That has been the process for a while now. It even seems like we are close to the finish line now, but after 13 unreturned phone calls...well.....

These pictures just show brief glimpses of the process. We'll see what happens, and when. After this you could look around and come up with several more projects to focus on, so you might ask "what's next on the project list?" Our answer: Nothing! At least not for quite some time. These mice need a break from cookies.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Can he really be 37? Let me think....8 years of schooling, four kids, one pet, 6 apartments, two houses, one dental practice, one office building, a thousand grey hairs...yep. He must be 37.

When Ted got to work we had decorated his office. I am sure his staff thinks his wife is a dork, but it is still fun to surprise him. When he came home we had his favorite: crab (actually, we had soup while he ate crab and Emma and Sam had a few bites - no one else is an enormous crab fan!) Then for dessert? No cake for Ted. His favorite is pie. We had lemon pie, and then a few days later finished off the cherry pie as well.

Ted is such a great guy I thought I would share a few things you may or may not know about him:

1. Ted says what he means, and he means what he says.

2. Ted used to do triathlons, and although he did one this past summer as a team, he has switched to bike racing. He's pretty amazing at it as well! Last summer he raced in five races - this year he is hoping for more.

3. He is the reigning champion of the ward tennis tournament. Since they only had one, he has yet to be defeated. He only gets to play about four times a year - so either this means he is awesome or the competition is......well, I just think he is awesome.4. Do you know how much weight he has gained since we were married in 1993? Three pounds.5. He has a wicked sweet tooth. The current stash in his nightstand? A two pound bag of peanut M&Ms, Sour Patch kids, Mike & Ikes, and Starburst candies. You can imagine how frustrating it is given item #4!6. Ted bleeds blue. Ted tries to catch almost every game whether it is at his office because we don't carry the network at our house, at our house taped on DVR so he can watch it faster, or at a friend's house, he tries to catch most games. Interestingly, how many games did he go and see when he actually attended BYU? One. (He was always playing soccer).7. Ted is the coach of Emma's select soccer team.8. Ted is a great skiier, but he admits to being more timid as time has pressed on!9. I swear Ted looks more distinguished and youthful every year. I am always telling him that we will be like George and Barbara Bush - she looks like she could be his mother! Of course, on a couple of occasions patients have questioned whether or not he is old enough to have finished dental school, so I guess looking youthful has its downside too.10. When he sets his mind to something, watch out. I'm not sure that I know very many people who can get up at 5:45 every morning to go ride their bike - in the garage! He will ride on the bike trainer almost every day for over an hour carefully monitoring speed, power, etc. This is to make sure that when it is nice enough for outside riding again he is ready. Personally, just thinking of staring at the garage wall is enough to make me want to sleep in!11. He has two favorite sayings - both of which are said with a dry sense of humor to lighten a situation: First, for when he is a bit stressed about how work is going: "I guess we may just end up in a cardboard box down by the river." Second, for when we aren't supporting his love of biking enough: "I guess I'll have to give up my dream of being in the Tour de France."

More random facts? He sleeps with a pillow over his head, he hates when you talk to him when he is working out, loves having the kids join him for situps and pushups, loves having nerf gun fights, loves the winter, dislikes being too hot, never balances his checkbook (don't worry, I do), eats a Carnation instant drink for breakfast EVERY day, is very quick to appreciate a clean house or a good meal, loves having friends over, is the favorite to jump with on the trampoline, hates gophers, loves tomatoes from the vine, loves "The Office", loves sucking on limes and lemons, and salts everything!

Quite frankly, we think he is the best husband and father! Happy birthday, Ted!